Hi all,

I've recently made two new purchases in the glass realm and I'm looking for suggestions for pairing a reel with these particular rods. Because I'm one of those guys who likes a rod to be balanced in the cork, it would be awfully valuable to have the weight of your reel if its not one in current production that I can't look up online.

The first rod is a Barclay 5wt 7'10". I've read the other thread about the Barclay but didn't get very far into suggestions that can be found these days. The rod is much more tip heavy than I expected and the reels I anticipated pairing it with are simply too light. In an effort to find something that balanced it, I used a Galvan Rush Lt 6 with WF7 bass line and backing just to get the approximate weight. That's a 5.5 oz reel plus line and backing! Of course it's also a 3.75" diameter reel and way too big for the diminutive grip on the Barclay. But, it was as close as I could come to a balanced rig. I don't have the funds for a 3 1/8 Hardy Perfect or Kineya which had been suggested, but I could probably pull off a Leland Vintage or Classic...coming in at 5.8oz and 3.5" and 4.9oz and 2.9" respectively. That said, my Galvan Torque 5 (4.8oz) fully loaded with line was also too light. Lastly, my Galvan reels are not a good fit on the reel seat but my Hardy's are. I'd like to stick with something that is no larger than 3.5" diameter and is on the higher side of 5 oz. I've seen a used Cascapedia but at 6.3 oz in may be too much. Any other thoughts/suggestions?

The second rod is a new Scott F Series 663-4. I have three unused reels at the moment that might work. A burnt orange Galvan Torque 3 (which I think would look awesome), a silver Galvan Brookie 3/4 and a Hardy Featherweight. I'd be curious to know what people are using on the 663...given the overall rod weight and short length, I'm guessing it is going to be a very light reel. Please advise.

As suggested above, balance can be very personal and to a degree, somewhat flexible. I have the 710 and can use a Daiwa 706 on it very comfortably. I can almost “balance” it with a Gunnison G2. I also have his 82 and “balance” it with the same G2 but with a second spool to which I added a little lead wire before adding the backing. So, do you have any reels that almost “balance” it to your satisfaction? If so, maybe a second spool with some lead wire would work. That way, you don’t have a reel that only works with one rod and a second spool should be cheaper than a new reel.

As for the Scott, I have a number of shorter, lightweight rods and almost exclusively use the original Ross Colorado 1 and clones of the Hardy Featherweight, i.e. Heddon 300/310, Berkley 530/540, Daiwa 700/710. Always seem to be available on the big auction site.

Abel TR2, Douglas Argus 3", Orvis CFO Iii, or Hardy LRH on the 7105. Old school Ross Evolution 0 or 1 for the Scott 663.

I too have gravitated towards lighter reels regardless of perfect balance in the traditional sense.

The Galvan T series reels are great reels - I have 3, one a T-4 in burnt orange. I'm sure your T-3 would look great on the orange Scott. Maybe a little heavy, but maybe not - you'd have to try it and see. But, with its excellent drag, it's more reel than you'd really need on a 6'6" rod. Small trout won't be running the drag On the other hand, if you plan to fish for large carp in a small stream it would be fine. As much as I like the Galvan T series, I dislike the Galvan Brookie because of the spool tensioner that has to set with an allen wrench and has no bias - outgoing tension always is equal to incoming. Your featherweight would be perfect for the Scott but too small (both in weight and line size) for the Barclay, IMO.

Ask the maker what he prefers. I have noted that sometimes adding more weight to get a balance at the grip makes the rod rather a club. Of course your opinion my vary and you're the one that needs to be satisfied in the end.
I fish a lot of bamboo and its not that hard to adjust to a slightly tip heavy rod at all for me.

Quite a few reel weights in this- https://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=52469

Thoughts on how get balance here- https://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=54587 and here-
https://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7232

Dutchess 3 1/4"

A nice click pawl reel with a thin foot that will fit a cap and ring is the Islander IR series. you'd have to find a used one though; production is on hold until the supply chain jam eases. perfect for glass 3-6 wt.

about 40' of LC trolling line will add an ounce to any reel, of course it takes up reel space.

Scooter:

There are a couple of newer 2-7/8” versions of the Cascapedia out there including what was called the Mk II 2/3/4 (Model HEC100) that made its debut in 2004, the subsequent Korean iteration called the Mk III 2/3/4 and the most recent Cascapedia 4/5 (Model HRECASB010), introduced in 2017 which is what you purchased.

All of those Cascapedias are 2-7/8” in diameter with a stated weight of 6.50 ounces although the newest, the 4/5 (Model HRECASB010) comes in a tad lighter with a stated weight of 6.30 ounces.

Bottom line, they are heavy reels. I know because I have a Mk II 2/3/4 hanging off a 7’6” 5wt bamboo rod. They will hold a 5-weight line, but if it is a DT there isn’t room for much backing.

Bottom line, you have 7 ounces of reel there with a line on it and likely no way to lighten it up considerably by removing any backing.

Regardless, they are sweet reels.

Enjoy!

I have a F2 653 and use a old Ryobi 255 MG which is a little light but makes for a overall light rig that I can fish all day......Aurelio

After using a few reels on the 7105 and fishing it again last week, I like paring it most with a Hardy JLH 7. Lighter and smaller than the Marquis 8/9 but works really well with the rod. Actually the JLH is turning out to be my most versatile reel working well on a number of 5 and 6 wt rods ranging from 7' to 8'6”.

I am learning that although the rod - reel balance changes a bit with reel choice, there is a wide range of reel weights that are just fine with any of my rods and it really doesn’t make a difference unless the reel weight is at either extreme.

Carl - egg patterns were hot yesterday at Devils Backbone …